National

Malema says 'capitalist system' must be audited

The racist notion that the progress of black youth was automatically a consequence of corruption must be confronted, said Julius Malema on Saturday.

The racist notion that the progress of black youth in the post-democratic dispensation was automatically a consequence of corruption must be confronted, ANC Youth League president Julius Malema said on Saturday.

Malema said certain “revelations” had come to light “in the process of engaging the entire discourse of media conducted lifestyle audits”.

“First is the racist notion and supposition expressed by both black and white people that the success and progress of black youth in the post democratic dispensation is automatically a consequence of corruption. This notion should be openly confronted and exposed as it has potential to undermine our hard won freedom to participate actively in the economy,” Malema wrote in an opinion article published by City Press.

“Second is the notion that seeks to criminalise all entrepreneurs that provide services to government as inherently corrupt and unethical, and labelled tenderpreneurs who have no brain and skill to do anything productive. The question we should ask is who should provide services to the state if all black entrepreneurs who put up consulting and construction firms are going to be rubbished as inherently corrupt tenderpreneurs.”

“This tendency is reflected within calls to infiltrate the ANC in order to misguide it to something it is not ... As a concrete way forward, we have already mentioned that we will never allow young entrepreneurs to be intimidated out of doing legitimate and corrupt-free business, including through proving services to the state.”

Malema said while he was not opposed to lifestyle audits, “our conviction is that the capitalist system is the one that should be audited and checked as how is it useful in the empowerment of our people and improvement of their living conditions”.

“We will never lose focus and fight over insignificant amount of resources, whilst we have a bigger struggle to fight.”

Lifestyle audits
Meanwhile, a national executive committee member told the Mail & Guardian last week that the national leadership had instructed the party’s top six officials to investigate allegations that some people in the party, perceived to be loyal supporters of President Jacob Zuma, had been unfairly targeted to have their lifestyles audited.

Malema claimed in a series of media interviews last week that he had a document allegedly drafted by former officials of the South African Revenue Service (Sars) at the request of some senior ANC figures.

He said the document sought to discredit some party leaders by questioning their income, the affordability of their lifestyle and their ownership of assets.

He was defending himself against allegations that he used his political muscle to secure government tenders for companies that he had interests in.

NEC member Billy Masetlha confirmed that the party was investigating a secret intelligence document, with the names of people to be targeted for political gains, but he could not confirm that it was the same document that Malema referred to this week. - Sapa